George



(5.1. AYRES.

HINGE FOR DOORS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 29, |918.

Patented Aug. 12, 1919.

C2 L E. l

rrED lSTATES HINGE ron, noone.

Specieation of Letters Patent.

Patenten aug.' te, taie.

Application tiled March 279, 1911.8.Y Serial No. 225,466.

To all whom it may concern:

'Be it known that I, GEORGE J. AIRES, a citizen of the United States, and residing at 'New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented Acertain new and useful Improvements in Hinges for Doors, of which the following isa specication, such as will enable those skilled in the art to which it appertainsto make and use the same.

This invention relates to doors, gates, and like swinging vclosure devices, and the object thereof is to provide a device of this class which when swung in either direction within certain limits and released will automatically return to the closed position, and which when swung in either direction at right angles to the closed position will automatically remain in the first named position until force is applied to move it out of such position when it will automatically return to the closed position; a further object being to provide a structure of this class which does not involve springs or similar devices but which operates entlrely by gravity, and with these and other objects in view the invention consists in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

The invention is fully disclosed in the lfollowing specification, of which the accompanying drawing forms a part, in which the separate parts of my improvement are designated by suitable reference characters in each of the views, and in which Figure 1 is a sectional view showing my improved door construction and the method of mounting and using the same;

Fig. 2 a longitudinal section on the line 2*.2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3` a` "vertical section on the line 3 3 `of Fig. 2; and

,F ig. 4 a side view of a.. detail of the construction. y

In the drawin forming part of this specication, I have indicated at a the top of a frame of a door, at a2 the bottom of said frame and at a3 the back side face portion of said door frame, and at l have indicated a door mounted in said frame.

In the practice of my invention I countersink in the top door frame member ,a a plate c having a socket bearing c2 and in the top of the door is countersunk a corresponding plate d having a pivot pin d2 adapted to enter the socket bearing c2. In the bottom lframe member a2 is countersunk a plate e, having a straight outer face e2 and an arcshaped inner face e3, and said plate is provided with a raised pivot pin e4 and at opposite sides thereof with cup-shaped recesses e5 with which communicates an arc-shaped groove e7, in the central partof which is a cup-shaped recess es. p

The top surface of the plate e is beveled downwardly and inwardly in the direction of the recess e8, as clearly shown, and the side portions .of the groove e7 between the recesses e5 and the recess e8 are also inclined downwardly and inwardly. ln the bottom of the door b and over the plate e is countersunk a plate or casting f which may be of any desired form in cross section but which is of irregular or angular shape in the construction shown, and which is provided with a countersunk socket bearing f2 adapted to receive the pivot pin e4 of the plate e and in the bottom of the part f inwardly of the socket bearing f2 is countersunk 'a ball bearing g of well known form and construction, and which comprises a casing g2 the bottom of which is open and inwhlch is placed a ball g3, which projects below the bottom of said casing and in the top of which is a ball race provided `with bearing balls g4 which rest on the ball g3, and in the operation lof the device`the ball g3 is adapted to move through the groove e7, or the separate side portions thereof and to enter the cupshaped recesses e5 and es.

In Figs. 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawing, the `door b is shown in its closed position with the ball g resting in the recess e8 and if, when in this position, the door be swung in either direction and within an arc of ninety degrees it will when released automatically return to the closed position, but if the door be swung through a complete arc of ninety degrees or at rightangles to the closed position as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2, the ball g3 will enter oneiof the recesses c5 and the door will automatically remain in the wide open position until force is applied to move it in the direction of the closed position into which itwill automatically swing.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that the door when swinging from one position into another, as described herein, also moves vertically and for this reason the lll@ titi

vertical dimensions of the door are less than the vertical dimensions of the frame or other' support or supports in which it is mounted.

The ball bearing device of which the ball g3 forms a part is of well known construction and in itselfforms no part of my invention, and any suitable device of this class may be employed and from the foregoing description it will be seen that my improvement does not involve hinges, springs or other devices ot this class and is automatic in operation at all times, except for the eflort made to open the door, or to move it out of its wide open position and, as hereinbefore stated, this construction may be applied to doors, gates, shutters or any other closure devices,4 and the said construction may be made strong and durable as necessary and will not easily getout of order in use and thus render repairs necessary.

My invention is also not limited to the eX- act details of construction herein shown and described, and changes therein and modifications thereof may be made, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of my invention or sacricing its advantages.

lit will also be seen from the foregoing description, that while l have shown and described my improvement as applied to a door adapted to swing through half of a circle, my invention is not limited to this use thereof, as the same may `be applied to a door, gate. shutter or other article adapted to swing through an arc only of ninety degrees, in which event the groove e7 need not be over forty-five degrees in length and only one socket recess e5 will be necessary and other recesses e5 in the groove e7 may be used regardless of the length of said groove, and whereby said door or other article might be held in an open posit-ion at an angle ot forty-five degrees or less or more instead ot at an angle of ninety degrees.

By reference to Figs. l and t of the drawings and as `heretofore pointed out, it will be noted that the upper surface ot the member e is inclined downwardly from that side adjacent which the depressions e5 are located and in the general direction ot' the depression es. Due to this inclination of the upper surface ot the said member e, it is evident that the wall of the groove c7 nearest the pintle c4 will be higher than the opposite temeer wall of the said groove So that while the engagement of the bearing ball in this groove will exert a slight pull upon the member ot the hinge in which it is mounted so as to cause-the bushing f2 to slightly bind the pin-I tle et to provide for smooth working et the parts of the hinge when the door is swung, there is on the other hand no tendency for the said bearing ball to ride out oi the groove if the door is violently stvung upon its hin es.

aving fully described my invention, what li claim as new and desire to secure by lietters Patent, is

1. A door hinge comprising members having coacting pintle elements, one oit said members being formed with an arcuate groove concentric to its pintle element and inclined downwardly from each end toward its intermediate point, the member being further formed with a depression at each end of the groove and with a depression at the intermediate point of the groove, the groove opening into the depressions and the depressions being of greater depth than the groove, and a bearing Iball carried by the other member to travel in the groove and to seat in the said depressions in did'erent positions of swinging movement of the door.

2. A door hinge comprising members having coacting pintle elements, one of said members being formed with an arcuate groove concentric to its pintle element and inclined downwardly from each end toward its intermediate peint, the member being 1 i a t res"on a eaci 1V i'urthei termed n it? iep si t i end ot the groove and with a depression at the intermediate point ot the groove, the groove opening into the depressions and the depressions being of greater depth than the groove, and a bearing ball carried by the other member to travel in the groove and to seat in the saiddepressions in diderent positicns of swinging movement ot the door, the wall ot the groove nearer the pintle element being higher than the opposite wall.

lin testimony that l claim the foregoing as my invention li have signed my name, in presence ot the subscribing witnesses, this 27th day of March, l9l8.

GEltG-E d. AYRE. Witnesses:

. E. MULREANY, lol. E; lnoi/rrson.

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